Max Steinmetz

Max Steinmetz - (Big Mac)

12/5/2001 - 9/22/2007

When we got the call that Max was being transported to Rochester in November 2003 we were all so excited to meet him. I remember Rob's first impression of him, "He's very dark" I think is what he said. And then we had our first meeting at Brenda and Jim's house. Mac (Big Mac), later named Max came right up to the door to greet us. Ready to start his new life as a Steinmetz. I remember the ride home in the back of the Jeep like it was yesterday. He smelled like a combination of mango shampoo and chlorine. Max decided to take a swim in the pool where he was being fostered the day he was scheduled to fly home. Silly boy!! It was off to meet his human brother David, and K-9 brother Rudy.

Max took on various names in our house, Maxie, Maxie-man, Maximus, and my all-time personal favorite, Maximus-Cirrillious...the Roman warrior from the movie Gladiator. And a warrior he turned out to be. Max immediately took the role as Alpha dog in our pack. Rudy, Max's yellow lab brother was a pushover. Max loved romping with Rudy every chance he got. Our biggest surprise came when the first significant snow fell that December. Max tip-toed out of the slider onto the deck, unsure what to make of this white, cold, fluffy stuff under his feet. But within minutes he went from a Gold Coast Florida dog to a good old homegrown Rochesterian. We have never seen a dog who loved the snow more then Max. We dubbed him "Little Red" because his coat was bright red. He would have spent hours outside in the snow if we had let him.

Then strangest thing started to happen. Our Max suddenly started to act more like a Labrador retriever then a grey! He would bark at strangers who came to the door, bounce to greet us when we came home and beg for food so hard he would put any lab to shame!

We will miss our walks around the neighborhood and the never-ending glances and inquisitive questions from people who don't know what greyhounds are all about. We loved telling people how he was brought to us and how much he added to our lives. We also remember being probably one of the only owners who were ever asked to "Never bring Max back to a meet and greet" as he was not the proto-typical greyhound. Max and Mom went to a M & G at Petco in Greece . Max spent the entire time whining and panting so hard people thought he had just run a race!! Needless to say, he was never invited again.

We never would have thought that some of the behaviors Max exhibited that drove us crazy i.e.: whining at 4:00 AM to go outside, or to eat, or for no apparent reason at all, pulling all of the stuffing out of the kids stuffed animals and howling so loud at the answering machine when it would pick up a call that you couldn't hear who was calling, would be the things we now miss so much and wish we could hear or see one more time. When a dog is taken as prematurely as Max was, you come to appreciate the dogs quirkiness just like that of a human being, as they are truly insignificant compared to the emptiness that loss creates!

Our household will have a difficult time filling the void Max left behind...he will forever be in our hearts and never forgotten. We hope he has crossed over the Rainbow Bridge !